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France v Peru (2018 World Cup)
| next = }} France v Peru was a match which took place at the Central Stadium on Thursday 21 June 2018. Preview and teams's preparation France and Peru could name unchanged XIs for their Group C tie but Olivier Giroud will be hoping for a start after he was involved in the build-up to the winning goal against Australia. Peru's all-time leading scorer Paolo Guerrero could also earn a start in attack after coming off the bench in the narrow 1-0 defeat by Denmark. Guerrero, Peru's captain, had a 14-month drug ban lifted so he could play in Russia after the captains of rivals Australia, Denmark and France wrote to Fifa asking it to lift the ban. France went into the competition as one of the favourites but they needed a late own goal to break Australian resistance in their opening game in Group C on Saturday. Paul Pogba's lobbed effort deflected off Australia full-back Aziz Behich after history was made with the World Cup's first video assistant referee-enabled goal. VAR penalised Josh Risdon for a sliding challenge on Antoine Griezmann and the Atletico Madrid striker scored the spot-kick before Australia equalised through Mile Jedinak's penalty. Peru's World Cup campaign started with defeat against Denmark after the South American side has missed a penalty. Christian Cueva's strike flew over the crossbar - after another VAR-awarded spot kick - and that miss proved crucial as the Danes took the lead through Yussuf Poulsen, who had conceded the penalty. Peru are competing in their first World Cup finals since 1982 and more than 40,000 Peruvians have travelled to Russia to cheer them on. Head to head France and Peru's only previous encounter was a friendly in April 1982. The South American side won 1-0 at the Parc des Princes. The last South American team to beat France at the World Cup were Argentina in 1978. Since then, France are unbeaten in their last seven World Cup fixtures against South American opposition (W3, D4) with three of the last four games ending goalless. France have kept a clean sheet in each of their last six World Cup games against South American sides. Match Kylian Mbappe's first-half strike helped France overcome - and eliminate - a resilient Peru to earn a spot in the knockout round of the World Cup. Ricardo Gareca's side, buoyed on by their passionate support inside the Ekaterinburg Arena, came alive in the second half after falling behind in the 34th minute but ultimately could not find the equaliser that would have prevented their exit. Monaco's Mbappe was the player to punish the Peruvians when he tapped in Olivier Giroud's deflected shot, coming after a period of France dominance. But it was Peru who had the upper hand after the break. Midfielder Pedro Aquino went closest to levelling when his stunning strike cannoned off the bar. Benfica's Andre Carrillo, who was on loan at Watford last season, also tested Hugo Lloris' goal with a strike while substitute Jefferson Farfan hooked his effort into the side-netting. France's defence remained resolute to the final whistle, although they have yet to convince fully that they are one of the favourites for title. The French are beginning to simmer. After unremarkable 2-1 win over Australia, Didier Deschamps' men produced an improved display, aided by the inclusion of striker Olivier Giroud. The Chelsea striker, a 70th-minute substitute last week, was the focal point of many French first-half sorties - fulfilling his duties of holding up the ball, and allowing Antoine Griezmann and Mbappe to join in a three-pronged attack. In the build-up to the match, Deschamps suggested that Giroud had not, on occasions, been on the same wavelength as his team-mates. However, on Thursday he was in tune within minutes of the first whistle. Early on, a one-two with the pacy Mbappe ended with the Monaco forward falling in the area before Giroud set up Griezmann, whose low strike was blocked by keeper Pedro Gallese. Peru's backline was finally pierced when Giroud's low deflected shot looped towards goal and was given the finishing touch by Mbappe. Deschamps is spoiled with attacking riches, but because of his more cautious instincts, it came as little surprise that France sat back after the interval and soaked up the Peruvian pressure. The tactic paid off against the minnows, but he might have to revise that plan against stronger opposition. The World Cup will be all the poorer after the elimination of Peru. Their fans, numbering approximately 43,000, have lifted the World Cup with their colour, flamboyance and noise. And the team have produced two competitive displays against two more established sides at this level of competition. As seen on many previous occasions, minnows rarely seem to get a rub of the green. Had Aquino's blockbuster of an effort with the outside of his boot moved two inches to the right then we might have been talking about a must-win final match against Australia. Instead, it is the Socceroos who still have something to chase for in that match while Gareca's men will be playing merely for pride. Details |goals2 = |stadium = Central Stadium, Yekaterinburg |attendance = |referee = Mohammed Abdulla Hassan Mohamed (United Arab Emirates) }} |valign="top"| |valign="top" width="50%"| |} Group C Table |w=2 |d=0 |l=0 |gf=3 |ga=1 |bc=lightgreen|advances = y}} |w=1 |d=1 |l=0 |gf=2 |ga=1|bc=lightgreen}} |w=0 |d=1 |l=1 |gf=2 |ga=3}} |w=0 |d=0 |l=2 |gf=0 |ga=2|eliminated=y}} |} Match Stats= {| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center" |- !width=130|Overall !width=70|France !width=70|Peru |- !scope=row|Goals scored |1||0 |- !scope=row|Total shots |12||10 |- !scope=row|Shots on target |4||2 |- !scope=row|Ball possession |43%||57% |- !scope=row|Corner kicks |5||3 |- !scope=row|Fouls committed |11||15 |-| Images= France v Peru (2018 World Cup).1.jpg France v Peru (2018 World Cup).2.jpg France v Peru (2018 World Cup).3.jpg France v Peru (2018 World Cup).4.jpg France v Peru (2018 World Cup).5.jpg France v Peru (2018 World Cup).6.jpg France v Peru (2018 World Cup).7.jpg France v Peru (2018 World Cup).8.jpg France v Peru (2018 World Cup).9.jpg France v Peru (2018 World Cup).10.jpg France v Peru (2018 World Cup).11.jpg France v Peru (2018 World Cup).12.jpg France v Peru (2018 World Cup).13.jpg France v Peru (2018 World Cup).14.jpg France v Peru (2018 World Cup).15.jpg See also *2018 FIFA World Cup :*2018 FIFA World Cup Group C External links *Match report at BBC.co.uk Category:2018 FIFA World Cup Matches